Syracuse joins stampede for latest Apple iPad

View full sizeDick Blume / The Post StandardPeople waiting in line at the Apple Store at Carousel Center in Syracuse, N.Y., for the new iPad.

Syracuse, NY -- Rusty and Noah Johnson have been hanging out in front of the Apple store at Carousel Center since 1:30 a.m.

The store doesn't open till 8 a.m., but father Rusty, 55, and son Noah, 16, wanted to be first in line to buy The New iPad, the computer company's latest tablet computer.

They got their wish. As the store prepared to roll up its gate, the Johnsons, of Baldwinsville, were first among more than 60 people lined up behind them.

Store employees clapped and counted down the last 10 seconds. They cheered as customers filed in.

"We just really like Apple products," Rusty Johnson said. The family has owned Macintosh computers, a MacBook Pro, an iPad 2 and an iPhone.

"I read on my 4S but it's so small," he said. The New iPad promised the same resolution but should be much easier to read, he said -- so much so that he is willing to lay out $599 to buy one.

View full sizeDick Blume / The Post-StandardNoah Johnson, left, from Baldwinsville, N.Y., with his dad Rusty Johnson, right, are first in line for the new iPad at the Apple Store at Carousel Center in Syracuse, N.Y.

Getting to the mall by 1:30 a.m. was Noah's idea. When Apple released the iPad 2 at 5 p.m. one afternoon, they arrived at 9:30 a.m. and were ninth in line. "So I figured the same amount of time," he said.

Apple employees brought coffee and water to the growing line of customers about 6:30 a.m.

That was about an hour after Abigail and Scott Roberts, both 35, got in line. They left their Binghamton home at 4:30 a.m. They were 13th and 14th in line.

Like the Johnsons, the Roberts are big Apple fans and owners of several of the company's products. They were prepared to plunk down $830 for a New iPad with a 64 gigabyte memory plus $100 for an Apple TV accessory.

"It's the best tablet money can buy," Abigail Roberts said.

Apple product premieres are exciting, too, she said. Between the anticipation, the crowds and the lack of sleep, she said, "it feels like Black Friday."

The line quickly dissolved as Apple employees greeted customers and ushered them into the store. There was none by 8:30 a.m.

A handful of Best Buy employees stood nearby, however, watching the action at Apple. Best Buy also is selling the new tablet beginning today.

Also on hand were two men from AT&T, forbidden by their company policy from discussing their names or purpose, and Debbie Crumb, a Verizon representative.

"I'm here just to help out any customers who might need help from us," Crumb said.

The line was smaller but the excitement equal at Best Buy at the northeast end of Carousel Center. There were three people in line there about 7:15 a.m. -- Anthony Gooden, 48, and A.J. Gooden, 13, father and son from Liverpool, and Alvin Nelson, 61, of Syracuse.

Best Buy's Geek Squad counter will be closed until noon today because of The New iPad launch, a sign on the store's door read. The store opens at 10 a.m.

Nelson said he was looking forward to the new tablet's features, especially the promised improved resolution and speed.